Sledding Generates a Wide Range of Experiences

Cheerful Winter Spirits bring Anticipated Sledding

With Winter underway, sledding is once again becoming a very popular outdoor activity for Duxbury residents. Sledding sparks many different emotions in riders. Senior Kelly D. said, “I love going really fast and feeling the wind brush off you.” Sophomore Cam H. also said, “I Like the extreme speed wobble. I enjoy the feeling you get when you can’t slow down before you hit something.”

Collisions are definitely not uncommon during a typical day of sledding. Junior Owen C. said, “I saw a middle age man completely take out a four year old girl. Everybody stopped what they were doing and looked over, but after a few seconds the girl was fine and everything went back to normal.” However, not everybody reacts the same way to accidents though. Cam H. said, “One time I hit a little girl and her mom made me and all my friends leave the hill.” While sledding is very fun, there is always a danger involved just like everything else in life. Junior Connor G. said, “Once when I was sledding in Pennsylvania I banged into a pole and I’ve never been the same since.”

Some sledding accidents aren’t always caused by collisions though. Sophomore Ben S. said, “I was hiding in the woods and tried to throw a snowball at my friend sledding down the hill but I missed and ended up drilling some random guy in the face. He took a nice spill and proceeded to get up and yell at me.” Senior Halle W. said, “I ran to a really steep hill to get as much speed as possible for the jump but somehow ended up in a bunch of branches. I hadn’t realized how icy the hill was until it was too late and my sled ended up sideways. I had no clue where I was going to end up so I jumped off my sled and rolled right into a tree.”

The type of sled or tube can really make a difference during the ride down the hill. Senior Sam B. said, “I like to use the foam sled because I feel it allows me to get the most air” while Kelly D. said, “I like the tube because it is the easiest way to create a train of sleds to allow as many people as possible to go down at once.” No matter what type of sled or tube is used, sledding will always be fun. Cam H. said, “I like to use the human toboggan where you can just jump on a friends back and see how far you go.” Junior Matt B. said, “I’ve even gone down on a mattress before.”

The terrain can also have a big effect on how well a sled works. Senior Mike T. said, “North Hill is the go to place for Duxbury kids. It is right by the school and is big enough for all ages.” Most of the Duxbury residents agreed that North Hill was the prime local sledding spot. However, almost any location can work for sledding. Matt B. said, “While North Hill is my favorite, I’ve been sledding in my friend’s backyard and even at a water tower.”

Sledding does not always go just like it was planned. Halle W. said, “It’s not fun when you go down the hill and after a wipeout end up with snow down your pants and jacket and in your face.” Sam B. said, “The walk back up the hill is a lot less fun than the way down. On the way up you just get tired and hot.” Mike T. said, “I’ve been walking back up the hill before and have been completely taken out by reckless sledders.” The positives of sledding definitely outweigh the negatives of sledding by far though. Owen C. said, “The walk back up is absolutely worth the ride back down.” Ben S. said, “Sledding always ends with a lot of laughs and maybe an injury or two.”